Acne (acne vulgarous) is a chronic disorder of the skin generally confined to face, neck, chest, and back. Primary acne lesions appear as horny plugs (blackheads) which later can develop into pink papules, pustules, or nodules. The nodules can be tender, acute, localized collections of pus deep in the dermis. Large pustular lesions may develop and break down adjacent tissues to form lakes of pus, sinuses and, in certain cases, characteristic pitted scars. Tests have shown that heredity is a major predisposing factor in the disease which is described as polygenic (some defects are caused by a group of genes) and is difficult to clearly delineate heredity effects. Acne typically has a puberty or post-puberty onset wherein pilosebaceous units enlarge and produce sebum. Acne can occur when an excess of sebum is produced or when the folicular openings are too small to permit the escape of increased sebum flow, or when sebum is too thick to be expelled from the folicular openings, or under all three conditions. The duration of acne vulgarous after onset is highly variable and can persist into and through the fourth decade of life, but typically peaks during the teen years and typically terminates in the third decade of life. A number of different treatments have been proposed, however, none have met with uniform success.
Clearly a substantial need exists for effective treatments of acne and related skin disorders that can reduce or alleviate the unsightly aspect of the skin disorder.